Rain floods Bliss streets
Monsoon season hits El Paso fast, furious

Wilson A. Rivera
Monitor Staff

VIRGINIA REZA

At the intersection of Luke Street and Sergeant Major Boulevard, in front of the Aero Vista Housing entrance, a sport utility vehicle stalls out in about four feet of water Friday. Fort Bliss Fire Department firefighters Osbaldo Muniz, Gerardo Molina, and Margaret Mondragon were on the scene.

---

“We see it on the television scrolling across or hear about it on the radio,” said Alvaro Mata, a station captain with the Fort Bliss Fire Department.

Flood warnings are often broadcast on a media source informing individuals of incoming rain showers and the possibilities of flash flood warnings. Fort Bliss is located in a desert region and when heavy downpours occur is this type of climate, flash flooding can happen in less than a minute. Fast moving rivers can be created by the rain in arroyos when the rain cuts through the dry, dusty soil.

Living here in the desert there isn’t much rainfall but when there is a storm, it will rain a lot all at once, Mata said. There are three types of warnings, but the one to be concerned with is arroyo flooding.

Flood watches, warnings and advisories are the three which are given when the possibility of flood may occur. This usually happens with heavy rain falls in an area and is fast moving water, according to the fire chief.
Flash flood waters have the power, or force, to move boulders, tear out trees, and destroy buildings and bridges.

Turn on the TV or radio and listen to any weather alerts if the sky looks stormy, according to Mata.
“A lot of people don’t pay attention to those things. People now, with what happened recently, will pay more attention to the warnings,” he said.

If you are driving on a road and you notice that it appears to be flooded, avoid it or turn around and find an alternate route. If your automobile stalls crossing over the high water, abandon it immediately and get to higher ground.

Vehicles are not designed to go through water. Water at a certain depth can clog up the exhaust and make the engine not run properly, said Mata.

“Try not to push the car out of the flood. You’ll be risking your life. Let the emergency responders rescue you; don’t attempt to do it on your own because if you get washed down there’s no one there to help you,” said Mata

The best advice to any signs of flash flooding is to move immediately to higher ground.